Introduction

With the help of two interpreters, Hernán Cortés was able to gather the necessary information to direct his troops and resources against the great city of Tenochtitlan, subdue the Aztec leader, Montezuma and the city's inhabitants, and exact large sums of Aztec wealth. In the process, Cortés spread the Columbian Exchange from the Caribbean Islands to the mainland of what is now Mexico. With the help of his Native American interpreters, Doña Marina and Jeronimo Aguilar, Cortés maneuvered divisions of his 600 man army from Vera Cruz to Mexico City in 1519. Along the way Cortés triumphed over hostile tribes and made alliances with others. Cortés risked his social standing and his life in foraging for Aztec riches. Charges of insubordination and treason threatened to ruin him should his gamble at rendering the great city of Tenochtitlan, its inhabitants, and all of its wealth and resources to his will fail. When Cortés invaded Mexico he was acting as an outlaw against the will of his superior, Governor Diego Velázquez of Cuba. If he failed to convince Charles V of Spain to allow him to govern the area in the King's name, Cortés faced almost certain imprisonment and/or death at the hand of fellow Spaniards. If he succeeded, the prospect of becoming the viceroy of a New Spain awaited.

The study of Cortés' invasion of Mexico reveals characters that are larger than life. Hernán Cortés, Doña Marina, his interpreter, and Montezuma prove to be extraordinary people. Their remarkable story speaks from various primary documents from Spanish and Native American sources. Many times history texts do not reveal the origins of historical data. Fascinating stories and their sources can become 'generalized', marginalized, or omitted entirely from the historical survey in a quest to accommodate an all inclusive correctness. Thanks to the variety of primary sources and scholarly work available, the Spanish invasion can be revisited in light of modern social mores. Cortés wrote five letters to the King of Spain. From his letters we learn what he saw and accomplished. Perhaps, most importantly we gain a cultural perspective on the Spanish and the Mexica- the natives at the time of the Spanish invasion. Bernal Díaz, a subordinate of Cortés wrote and revised a memoir later in his life from which we gain additional perspective on Cortés, Doña Marina, Montezuma, and Díaz. We gain an additional and Native-American perspective from the work of Bernardino de Sahagún, a Franciscan friar, who in the 1560's, compiled native accounts of the invasion as part of a twelve book encyclopedia. These sources are the basis of at least some of the scholarly work of secondary authors such as Hugh Thomas, Anthony Pagden, Gérard Chaliand and Tzvetan Todorov. Through these sources and secondary authors, teachers and students can discover the complexities of the Aztec world, the conquistador's culture of greed and power, and the means by which the Columbian Exchange spearheads into mainland Mexico. Moreover, current and universal issues of governance, social strata, economy, religion, and gender can also be investigated. Exploring works by these authors through proven reading strategies will provide high school students and teachers a vehicle by which to gain insight into the multiple perspectives of the major players and the primary issues of the Spanish invasion of Mexico and sharpen reading skills. In this unit, primary and secondary accounts of the major players and events are offered for review with lessons that emphasize reading strategies.

Objectives

Integrating the Seminar Experience to the Standards and Practices of Teaching High School.

This unit seeks to integrate my experience as a fellow in Mary Miller's seminar Art and Identity in Mexico from Olmec Times to Present at the 2005 Yale National Seminar with the standards and practices of high school history teaching. During the unique ten day session, nine middle and high school teachers from school districts in Duval County, Florida, Pittsburg Pennsylvania, Charlotte, North Carolina, Houston, Texas, and New Haven, Connecticut and Professor Mary Miller, Yale University's Vincent Scully Professor of History of Art explored art and identity in Mexico from antiquity to the present and discussed the methodology of creating curriculum based on this material for our respective classes. The unit seeks to extend our collaboration to the high school classroom where students and teachers can engage the questions and issues we explored. I thank my colleagues for their inspiration and dedication to the experience. In essence, I hope my curriculum unit can create a similar engaging collaborative mission in my classroom that was modeled in our seminar.

However, addressing high school students with issues regarding the Spanish invasion of Mexico and the Columbian Exchange requires the consideration of some additional variables and dynamics that differ from the experience of adult professionals in a seminar. Strategies in this unit deal with many of these variables and dynamics: local, state, and national standards, school culture, class size, levels of maturity and ability levels. These are reflected in the following narrative. Translating the products of our national initiative experience to the high school classroom will be full of challenges. However this fusion of educational forces seeks to achieve a fruitful result somewhat akin to the amalgam produced by the collision of the Old and New World through the Columbian Exchange-hopefully without the warfare of course.

While the unit is specifically designed to use with mid level history classes at Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven, Connecticut, its alignment with state and national standards should make at least some of the objectives, strategies, lessons, and resources useful for application to remedial and honors level high school classes in any urban school district. In short, this unit is for high school history teachers and/or, I suppose, any teacher or person interested in learning about the events and outcomes of the Spanish invasion of Mexico which begins in 1519.

The unit audience will be college and honors students of grade 9 World History Class and grades 10-12 International Relations Class at Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven, Connecticut. Cross is a diverse urban high school with approximately 1400 students. The school serves children from different socio-economic backgrounds. The school serves children who live in public housing and children of Yale University faculty. Children who are immigrants to the United States and children who are multi-generation Americans attend Cross. The three largest ethnic groups are Latino, African American, and Caucasian. However, there are also significant numbers of other ethnic groups that attend Wilbur Cross. Students are grouped by ability level in honors or college level classes. Some remedial classes are offered to those in need. AP classes and elective courses are also offered. Students are required to accrue 24 credits in order to graduate. Before graduating students are expected to complete a full year of World History (grade 9), a full year of United States History I (prehistory -1877), a one half year course in United States History II (1877-present), and one half year course in Civics. They may take additional history electives such as International Relations or Caribbean History.

Presenting the Perspectives of the Multiple Players in the Spanish Invasion of Mexico: Historical Figures and Historians

The story of the Spanish invasion of Mexico is remarkable episode in human and international relations. Above the interaction, deception, the fighting, and correspondence among the Spanish, Aztecs and neighboring tribes, exceptional historical figures emerge: Hernán Cortés, the bold Machiavellian conquistador, Montezuma, the superstitious and conservative Aztec emperor, and Doña Marina, Cortés' undoubtedly brave yet enslaved interpreter. The complexities and realities of these exceptional historical figures make for great historical drama on an international stage. The drama relates to what history textbooks famously document as the Columbian Exchange: the exchange of ideas, people, livestock, and produce between the Spanish and Native American world. The story of these people is the force that humanizes the exchange; textbooks alone often lack elements of personification. The characters reveal components of our own personalities amplified: ambition, fear, tradition, superstition, and greed. Yet we would know nothing of these great people and events without the witnesses and interpreters. The historians, of this drama provide us with the detail to benefit from this story. Cortés wrote letters to King Charles asking to legitimize Cortés' invasion of Mexico. Bernal Díaz retold the story of the invasion years after serving under Cortés. Bernardino de Sahagún compiled an immense encyclopedia which detailed the accounts of the Spanish invasion from the Nahua perspective.

Students will respond orally and in writing to activities presented to them in the unit. Some particular outcomes relating to reading strategies are expected of students as they complete the unit. Through applied reading strategies students will gain insight into key content areas. First, students will become familiar with the historical figures Montezuma, Hernán Cortés, Doña Marina, Bernal Díaz and Bernardino de Sahagún. Second students will demonstrate understanding of the complexities of Aztec society and the relationships the Aztecs had with other tribes of the area. Third, students will analyze the circumstances leading to Cortés' invasion of Mexico. Lastly, students will interpret the irrevocable effects of the Columbian Exchange. Strategies for the unit will include having students read from and interpret multiple texts: primary and secondary sources. They will read excerpts from Bernal Díaz, Hernán Cortés, Miguel Leon-Portilla's Broken Spears, and the Bernardino De Sahagún's Florentine Codex. Excerpts from the work of secondary authors, Hugh Thomas, James Lockhart, Stuart Schwartz, Tzvetan Todorov, and Gérard Chaliand will also be utilized.

Naming and Describing the Major Characteristics of the Columbian Exchange: the Transplant of Animals, Plants, Disease, and People.

When we read details about the Columbian Exchange we are reminded that the "Exchange" can be a rather polite term for the baggage brought and taken by the Spanish in their enterprising conquests. Below Alfred Crosby's comments suggest that Cortés' expedition into Mexico already integrated elements of the native culture with European culture.

By the time of Cortés' assault on the mainland, the Spaniards had created in the Caribbean a perfect base camp for that assault. When the conquistadors moved into Mexico, Honduras, Florida, and elsewhere, they carried smallpox and many other maladies, freshened by recent passage through the bodies of the Arawaks. The Spaniards rode on horses bred in the Antilles, and wardogs from the same islands trotted beside them. Their saddlebags were packed with cakes of Caribbean cassava. Behind the conquistadors, herded along by Indian servants, came herds of swine, cattle and goats all of which had been born in the islands. In the span of the first post-Columbian generation, the Spanish had created in the Caribbean the wherewithal to conquer half a world. 1

Crosby's statement reflects how quickly the elements introduced by the Spanish took to the Caribbean. It suggests that the spread of these elements into Mexico was inevitable. It also suggests that the Spanish were already adapting components of Native American culture. Animals that were introduced and thrived in the New World include swine, cattle, sheep, goats, and horses. Plant life introduced by the Spaniards include: wheat, rice, barley, oats. Alternatively, Native Americans provided maize, beans, peanuts, potatoes, sweet potatoes, manioc (cassava), squashes, pumpkin, papaya, guava, avocado, pineapple, tomato, chile pepper, cocoa. Smallpox the deadliest effect of the exchange decimated the Native American population by up to 90 percent. Today the populations of Mexico and surrounding areas reflect a unique mixing of native -American, Spanish, and African blood.

Elements of the exchange were evident in the consciousness of Cortés' contemporaries. An illustration from Sahagún's Codex circa 1560's (see lesson plan) indicates a rather glowing depiction of the degree to which the Old World has adapted to the New World. The figure shows the Old World connected to the New World by a rainbow. Spanish men are unloading ships while a Spanish man sits comfortably writing on a tablet. An Indian in a cloak appears to be speaking to another Spaniard. Is the woman to his left interpreting for him as Doña Marina did for Cortés, or is she being given to the Spaniard as a gift as was common practice? In the figure, one can also see many animals that were introduced to the New World; lamb, goats, horses, cattle, and swine took comfortably to the New World. In fact, swine reproduced so rapidly that they were deliberately left on islands to multiply and be future food source. In 1609 shipwrecked sailors were able to survive in the Bermudas on the offspring of swine left on islands years before.2 Cattle also adapted well. The result was that meat soon became a staple of the New World diet and cattle by-products such as hides and tallow (used in making candles) was in abundant supply. The abundance of cattle provided inexpensive meat. Hides were also so abundant that they were exported back to Europe. In 1587 only sixty-six years after Cortes retook Tenochtitlan a Spanish fleet brought 64, 350 hides to Seville.3 The introduction of Old World animals produced some negative results; overgrazing by cattle and sheep deteriorated some of the plains of Mexico by 1580. Rats also flourished on some Caribbean islands.4 Education and religion are also represented in the picture. The tree on the earth platform has religious connotations. The man writing comfortably perhaps represents the practice of numerous religious orders such as the Franciscans who in addition to trying to Christianize New Spain sought to educate natives and Spaniards. Sahagún, a Franciscan friar, helped found a controversial school of Latin in 1536 in which sons of native nobility were educated. Despite protests against educating Native Americans in Latin by some Spanish and religious authorities, these students ultimately helped Sahagún compile the native Nahua accounts for Sahagún's historical encyclopedia.

Encouraging Students and Teachers to Effectively Address Performance Standards.

Adherence to standards has become a cornerstone to most public education. Increasingly it seems as if teachers are being asked to adhere more closely to district, state and national curriculum standards. The lessons in this unit adhere to a number of standards from the New Haven Public School Social Studies Curriculum that are also state and national standards. The primary standards to which the unit aligns are listed below. A more comprehensive list of standards that are addressed in this unit is included as Appendix 1.

Students should be able to demonstrate understanding commonalties, diversity, and change in the societies of the Americas from their beginnings to 1620 by comparing commonalties and differences between native-Americans and European outlooks, and values on the eve of "the great convergence." [Era 1, Standard 1A, #4 {7-12} (page 40) National Standards for U.S. History.]

Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of the ways that cultural encounters and the interaction of people of different cultures in pre-modern as well as modern times have shaped new identities and ways of life. [Standard 3c Historical Themes, {9-12} (page 9), CT Social Studies Curriculum Framework]

Students will demonstrate an understanding of the characteristics of societies in the Americas, Western Europe, and West Africa that increasingly interacted after 1450. [Era 1, Standard 1, (page 40) National Standards for U.S. History]

Students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of the ways race, gender, ethnicity, and class issues have affected individuals and societies in the past. [Standard 3f Applying History, {9-12} (page 10), CT Social Studies Curriculum Framework]

The New Haven Public Schools Social Studies Curriculum also includes some prescribed essential questions and suggested activities. The essential question and suggested activity of the New Haven Curriculum that pertains to this unit is listed below. I have added a second essential question and an alternative activity.

Essential Questions

Essential Question 1: What is the "great convergence" and how did it contribute to the development of societies in the Americas prior to 1620? (cultural)

Essential Question 2: How did the respective cultures of the Aztec and Spanish influence the decisions of Montezuma and Cortés?

Suggested Activity: Students will draw a map showing the spread of diseases, animals, and plants during the "Columbian Exchange"

Alternative Activity: Students will examine an illustration from Book 12 of the Florentine Codex to unpack characteristics of the Columbian Exchange

Promote Enthusiasm for Achievement

Guaranteeing that students will be enthusiastic about learning is difficult to ensure. However, I hope to encourage enthusiasm for learning in this unit with positive reinforcement and incentive based learning. A curriculum rubric will outline assessment for activities in the unit. It's fun to add incentives such as praise, certificates of achievement, gift certificates for completing assignments on-time, going beyond requirements, and submitting excellent work. The unit will be taught with the maxim that positive reinforcement will best generate enthusiasm for achievement and promote further independent investigation. The rubric will allow students to understand how they are being assessed and monitor their own progress throughout the unit.

Strategies

Using Reading Strategies to Address CAPT and Standards

This unit will employ extensive use of reading strategies in order to communicate the content of the unit. The reading strategies presented were practiced at an Urban Literacy workshop I attended in June 2005 that was sponsored by the Connecticut Writing Project. At the workshop, 16 English and history teachers investigated, discussed, and applied strategies from the text Subjects Matter: Every Teacher's Guide to Content-Area Reading (Heineman Press 2004). Participants in the project will meet in the fall to review work done this summer and plan on integrating strategies into the classroom. A list of reading strategies appropriate for this unit is included in Appendix 2

Improving the level of participation and scores of students who take the CAPT, (Connecticut Academic Performance Tests) is a goal of the New Haven Public Schools District. The Connecticut Writing Project has been offering training in reading and writing strategies at Wilbur Cross High School in order to help teachers better prepare students in the skill areas needed to successfully complete the CAPT. Subsequently, including reading strategies that promote building the skills necessary to complete mandated test will help students toward a graduation requirement in addition to giving them academic skill and enriched content.

The Spanish Invasion of Mexico: Reading the Content of a Rich Historical Drama

The Spanish Invasion of Mexico offers a variety of content that lends itself toward teaching reading skills in addition to learning historical subject matter. Primary and secondary sources show that the Spanish invasion of Mexico utterly transformed Mexico forever. The Spanish invasion led to the demise of the Aztec Empire. Diseases unforeseen in the New World were introduced by the Spanish. Smallpox decimated Native American populations. The invasion also spearheaded the introduction of European culture, livestock, and plants onto the mainland of Mexico. Subsequently, vegetation from the New World broadened the palates of Europe and bolstered the supply of healthy foodstuffs. A mixing of Spanish, native, and African peoples produced a new population that adopted equally diverse blend of Native American, European, and African customs. Today the culture of Mexico still reflects many of the changes that occurred as a result of the Spanish Invasion.

Cortés, Sahagún, and Díaz: Narrators of the Spanish Invasion

Hernán Cortés: Letters\From Mexico

Spanish and Native Americans authors provide the primary source information from the 16th century from which students can examine the motivations behind the invasion. Hernán Cortés' Letters From Mexico, translated by Anthony Pagden, provides the most immediate source of reporting on the actions of Cortés and his men in Mexico. In his letters, Cortés explains the unfolding of events that lead him to Mexico, reports observations of the lands and people, and petitions for approval to deliver the land and its wealth to the Spanish sovereign's realm (and place Cortés in charge). It becomes apparent in reading the first letter that Cortés is undermining his superior Diego Velázquez, the Governor of Cuba. He often portrays Velázquez as shortsighted and selfish and suggests that Cortés is really looking out for the best interest of the Spanish realm. He states such in his first letter in describing why Fernando Cortés, the expedition leader, Hernán Cortés, and their 400 troops decide to disregard their orders of Cuban Governor, Diego Velázquez, to trade for gold and instead founding a town as a land claim on Mexican soil

"for these reasons, therefore, it seemed to us not fitting to Your Majesties service to carry out the orders which Diego Velázquez had given to Hernando Cortés, which were to trade for as much gold as possible and return with it to the island of Fernandina in order that only Diego Velázquez and the captain might enjoy it, and that it seemed to all of us better that a town with a court of justice be founded and inhabited in Your Royal Highnesses' name. For once the land has been settled by Spaniards, in addition to increasing Your Royal Highnesses' dominions and revenues, You may be so gracious as to grant favors to us and to the settlers who come in future" 5

The favors envisioned by Cortés involved being appointed viceroy over the lands that would be claimed. Of course, in addition to the social status of a higher title, Cortés could hope to gain immense wealth through the blessing of the Spanish Crown. Cortés' initial land claim and town founding set the precedent by which Cortés would move from the Yucatan toward Tenochtitlan. It was a daringly calculated move by Cortés who circumvented his superior Velázquez, who did not have his own permission to colonize new land. Velázquez, having placed his own petition to claim new lands prior to Cortés, later sends an unsuccessful expeditionary force out to subdue Cortés and his men and bring Cortés back to Cuba.

Cortés' letters also contain eyewitness descriptions of the Aztec and Tenochtitlan. Like Bernardino De Sahagún, Cortés often employs analogy to compare observations of Aztec people and architecture to Spanish and Moorish culture. While it may seem natural to describe something new in terms of something known, Cortes' analogy might also serve the purpose of luring the King's desire to be the ruler of new lands.

Bernardino De Sahagún

Credit for the Native American perspective in this historical drama rests very much on Bernardino De Sahagún, a Franciscan father, who compiled a unique encyclopedia about the Spanish Invasion in Nahuatl and Spanish. Sahagún arrived in Mexico (1529) ten years after Cortés' arrival. He died in 1590 in Mexico at the age of 91. De Sahagún and other Franciscans are the first to learn the language of the Mexicans that are conquered. At the Franciscan seminary at Tlatelolco, founded in 1536, Sahagún taught Latin to the sons of former Mexican nobility. Teaching Latin to natives of Mexico drew the criticism of other religious orders and many Spaniards. Yet Sahagún's work with native Mexicans helped him perfect his own understanding of Nahuatl. In 1558 he was able to initiate work on his 12 book history, an encyclopedia that when completed in the late 1560's was written first in Nahuatl with drawings and then translated into Spanish. Sahagún gathered the information for his work from native Mexicans who were recruited from dignitaries from various cities.6 As a result of reading Bernardino De Sahagún, Montezuma's reaction toward the aggressive Spaniards is better understood. Students can understand the forces that influenced Montezuma's decision making: his premonitions based on Aztec cosmology, the advice of his council members, and general Aztec culture and customs. Students can read Sahagún's work in English thanks to the work of James Lockhart who translates Book Twelve of Sahagún's work (the Florentine Codex) and other Nahuatl works in the We People Here: Nahuatl Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico. . Miguel Leon-Portilla has compiled a similar yet simpler reading of the Aztec perspective in The Broken Spears: the Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico.

Bernal Díaz

Bernal Díaz, a subordinate to Cortés, also supplies detailed accounts of the invasion in his memoir The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico. Unlike Sahagún's students, Díaz writes from the perspective of the Spanish conquistadors. Hugh Thomas reports that while Diaz first reports his role in the invasion in 1539 at a sworn testimony called Informacion de Servicios y Meritos (I suppose it was something like being called in front of a Congressional Committee), he does not appear to begin writing his book until 1555 and then proceeds to edit it over the next thirty years. Thomas questions some details regarding Díaz' involvement in a couple of events. However he comments that "such things do not alter the magnificent sweep, and the value, of the book as a whole." 7 In addition to being written some years after the invasion, Díaz's work compares to Sahagun's in that it gives perspective on Cortés' interpreter Doña Marina. Cortés hardly mentions her despite having fathering one and possibly two of her children. Moreover, she is at his side during each of his successes.

The Players

Hernán Cortés is an observant and astute strategist who not only negotiates his way through foreigners and renders the strongest king in the area of Mexico helpless, but he also avoids almost certain ruin from his Spanish superiors for his audacious and selfish plan to render the Aztec submissive and grab Aztec gold. Cortés, perhaps influenced by Machiavelli, appears to be applying some Machiavellian principles to his own pursuit of power: better to be feared than loved. The Aztec king, Montezuma, haunted by bad omens, cannot seem to get rid of the overwhelmingly outnumbered but pesky Spaniards. His attempts to delay and derail the Spanish from coming to Tenochtitlan are ineffective. Ultimately, in light of his inaction and the cruelty and greed of the Spaniards, he is rendered a hostage to them before he dies in the chaos of a Spanish reign of terror on the Aztecs.

Doña Marina, a Native American interpreter for Cortés, plays an interesting role in the invasion. She gives opportunity to more closely analyze issues of gender during and after the Spanish invasion. While apparently marginalized by Cortés in his records, she is often praised by Bernal Díaz and attributed with important roles in Bernardino De Sahagún's Florentine Codex. It is clear that from the Nahuatl accounts and the account of Bernal Díaz that she was indispensable in negotiating with rival and friendly tribes. Díaz praises her considerably for her composure during Cortes and his men's early campaigns with coastal tribes in Vera Cruz.

"Let us leave this and say how Doña Marina who, although a native woman, possessed such manly velour that, although she had heard every day how the Indians were going to us and eat our flesh with chili, and had seen us surrounded in the late battles, and knew that all of us were wounded and sick, yet never allowed us to see any sign of fear in her, only a courage passing that of woman"8

Through Aguilar and Doña Marina, Cortés gained the vital information he needed about the Aztecs and neighboring tribes in order to make alliances, defeat hostile forces, and interact directly with Montezuma. She translated Cortés' orders to Aztec noblemen upon entering Tenochtitlan.

"And when the collection of all gold was completed, thereupon Marina summoned to her, had summoned, all the noblemen. She stood on a flat roof, on a roof parapet, and said, "Mexica, come here, for the Spaniards are suffering greatly. Bring food, fresh water, and all that is needed for they are suffering travail, are tired, fatigued, weary, and exhausted. Why is it you do not want to come? It is a sign that you are angry" 9

Despite her seemingly heroine qualities, Doña Marina's situation must have been rather difficult at best. Given to Cortés' superior as property and then taken by Cortés, she must have had few options to escape her situation. Scandalous and criminal by today's standards, it appears to have been common for native chieftains to offer the conquistadors their daughters and/or other beautiful women in the community. Doña Marina had one and possibly two children by Cortes despite his being married. She really did not have the options available to a contemporary woman. She had been offered up by her family and lived in the midst of an army of Spanish soldiers. How could she hope to survive if she did not cooperate? As one of few women among an army of men who were an ocean away from home, her choices of not being obedient or cooperative with Cortés could only have been desperate options. She makes an interesting figure to compare with other Native-American women who appear to have been thrust into similar situations. Sacajawea appears to have acted in a similar role for Lewis and Clark. Pocahontas was also an apparent offering for Captain John Smith. How these heroines compare is an excellent study of gender roles in major historical events.

Montezuma

Montezuma's legacy may or may not be fairly considered through the modern spectrum. In light of his military defeats he is cast as a superstitious and hesitant leader. At first glance it is absolutely incredible that a force of a few hundred Spaniards even with their muskets, could avoid defeat by thousands of native warriors. Of course one has to consider that the Aztec weren't without enemies and that enemy tribes allied with the Spaniards. Yet, it still seems implausible, especially when considering that the Aztec were not inept at making war, that the Spaniards were able to accomplish their military feats. Díaz and Cortés report that all initial contacts with natives resulted in some type of native attack on the Spaniards. This scenario creates opportunity for students to investigate all they can discover about Montezuma. Was he indecisive? To what extent was he a hostage to superstition and Aztec cultural beliefs? What if anything could he had done differently that would have been consistent with Aztec cultural beliefs? These are just three possible questions worth pursuing with students. In Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico, Stuart Schwartz suggests that Montezuma's superstition may have been a post-invasion explanation by native tribes who had no other explanation for why their leader could not defeat the Spanish. Diego Durán, a Dominican friar, who like De Sahagún learned Nahua and recorded Nahua history, tells how Montezuma responds to the dreams of elders after the Spaniards had arrived. Montezuma orders the elders to divulge their dreams to him even if it is against their will. "Moteczoma (Montezuma) listened attentively to what the old men and women had described. When he saw that it was not in his favor but that it confirmed the earlier ill omens he ordered that the dreamers be cast in jail. There they were to be given food in small measures until they starved to death. After this no one wished to tell his dreams to Moteczoma"10 Perhaps Montezuma is more worried for his safety and security from neighboring tribes than he is from the strangers-ie.Spaniards. There appears to be great worry for Montezuma. Is it the Spaniards, other tribes, or something else? The answers may germinate through reading Sahagún, Schwartz, Lockhart, Leon- Portilla, Chaliand, and Todorov.

Tenochtitlan: A Sophisticated and Cosmopolitan Wonder.

While people are the generally the engines of change and have been the focus of this unit, attention to Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec, is necessary to better understand the Aztec perspective. Considering the improbable military victory of the Spanish it would be easy to dismiss the Aztec as backwards and unsophisticated. However, the extent of economic, social, political and religious organization rivaled if not surpassed that of most classical empires. Accounts by historians are consistent in describing Tenochtitlan as a wonder. First, In Mirrors of Disaster, Gérard Chaliand describes that the Aztec were more than the inhabitants of one city.

The Aztec ruled an empire of present day Mexico City and 38 tributary provinces. 11

Each of the provinces sent raw materials, foodstuffs and finished goods as tribute to Technotitlan. Hugh Thomas further described the complexities of Aztec society in Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital city.

"There was no city bigger, more powerful, or richer within the world of which the people of the valley were informed. It acted as the focus for thousands of immigrants, of whom some had come because of the demand for their crafts…A single family had ruled the city for over a century. A mosaic of altogether nearly four hundred cities. Each with its own ruler, sent regular deliveries to the Emperor….maize, beans, cotton cloaks, war costumes, raw gold,…lip plugs, and strings of jade" 12

Even the conquistadors are consistent in describing the wonders of Tenochtitlan.

Hernán Cortés reported his observations to King Charles. While the reader can suspect that Cortés wants to make a favorable impression on the King (after all he wants the Kings approval), the reader can also extrapolate that even if exaggerated, Cortés' accounts reflect characteristics of a unique and sophisticated city. In his first letter to Charles, Cortés reports:

"There are some large towns and well laid out. The houses in those parts where there is stone are of masonry and mortar and the rooms are small and low in the Moorish fashion. …There are houses belonging to men of rank which are very cool and have many rooms, for we have seen as many as five courtyards in a single house…Inside there are wells and water tanks and rooms for slaves and servants of which there are many…Each chieftain has …a very large courtyard..shrines and temples with raised walks….they honor and serve with such customs and so many ceremonies that many sheets of paper would not suffice to give Your Royal Highness a true and detailed account… 13

Cortés employs the use of analogy for King Charles in comparing Aztec houses with Moorish fashion. He also implies that like the Spanish, Aztec society is based on a hierarchical social order full of men of rank with large houses with courtyards and rooms for slaves. His last comment about customs and ceremonies appears to imply that the Aztec must be advanced because they have so many ceremonies. The referral to not being able to describe them all in a few sheets of paper is perhaps a ploy to whet the King's appetite for more information.

Despite brushes with failure, Cortés ultimately triumphs in subduing the Aztecs and gaining King Charles' recognition. By 1521, the Aztec empire had been subjugated by the Spanish. The events leading to its demise were documented by Bernardino Sahagún in the Florentine Codex, Cortes in his letters to the King, and by Bernal Díaz, who wrote his account some years later. The following account by Bernardino Sahagún describes the surrender of the Aztecs:

The day on which we laid down our shields and admitted defeat was the day 1-Serpent in the year 3-House. When Cuauhtemoc surrendered, the Spaniards hurried him to Acachinanco at night, but on the following day, just after sunrise, many of them came back again. They were dressed for battle, with their coats of mail and their metal helmets…They all tied white handkerchiefs over their noses because they were sickened by the stench of the rotting bodies. They came back on foot, dragging Cuauhtemoc, Coanacotzin and Tetlepanquetzaltzin by their cloaks. …. When the fighting had ended, Cortés demanded the gold his men had abandoned in the Canal of the Toltecs during the Night of Sorrows. 14

The beginning of Spanish rule ushered in the beginning of a new society, New Spain. As the Spanish introduced Christianity and new customs, native traditions were not completely eradicated. In fact a sort of reverse influence happened in many respects. Some religious orders adapted the dress of natives and learned Nahua and other native languages. In the case of Bernardino De Sahagun, his learning of the Nahua language and acceptance of native sons into his tutelage allowed the preservation of the native voice.

In the following lessons students and teachers will gain exposure to the historical accounts of an immensely important and controversial event in human history. In his introduction to Bernal Diaz's The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico, Hugh Thomas concludes by calling the Spanish invasion "the most important event in the history of the America's"15 Various authors such as Thomas, Todorov, and Chaliand weigh the conventional arguments for Spanish ascendancy and the decline of the Aztecs in slightly different lights. It is generally agreed that Montezuma's inaction, the superiority and novelty of the Spanish soldier's weapons and uniforms, and the passing of dreadful communicable diseases all played a role in the demise of the Aztecs. But to what degree should these factors and other factors such as language, superstition, and luck be attributed? How should players such as Marina be viewed in this episode of history? As a woman and interpreter, she holds a unique and much underestimated role. Moreover, while the Aztec empire declines and countless Native Americans are wiped out, is it fair to say that the Spanish conquered the Aztecs? In what ways does Native culture survive and transform the Spanish? It would be fun for students to be able to offer their own perspective on these questions after reading these authors and primary accounts offered by the Codex and Díaz.

Classroom Activities

Three lessons follow that address the Columbian Exchange and the Spanish Invasion of Mexico. They make use of the strategies outlined in the narrative.

Lesson One: Examining the Columbian Exchange

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Objective: Students will examine and discuss an illustration of the Columbian Exchange and prior knowledge of the Columbian Exchange.

Illustration from the Florentine Codex (figure 1) 16

Objective: Students will examine and discuss an illustration of the Columbian Exchange and prior knowledge of the Columbian Exchange through the reading strategy: Think- Pair- Share

Instructions/Steps:

2. Which items do you think come from Spain?

3. What Native American items are portrayed in the picture?

4. What else was part of the exchange that is not in the picture?

Lesson Two. Launching the Columbian Exchange into Mexico.

Objective: Students will interpret a quote from, Crosby's The Columbian Exchange Chapter 3 through the reading strategy: It says- I say- And So

Steps: Have students answer the following questions after reading the caption provided below. Use the It says- I say- And so… answering format. A worksheet is provided as an addendum in figure 2

Question 1: What evidence in the quotation from Crosby shows that the Spanish are poised to conquer?

Question 2: What evidence shows that the Spanish were already adapting aspects of native culture?

Students will be assessed on the following criteria:

1. Student provides accurate evidence from the text, offers a reflection, and infers a conclusion from the reading
2. Student provides accurate evidence from the text, offers reflection, and infers a conclusion but work could use more detail and/or neatness
3. Student work provides some accurate evidence from the text, limited reflection and conclusion
4. Student work provides little or inaccurate information form the text, little to no reflection, and little to no conclusion

• Student work contains little to no response. Responses listed are inaccurate

By the time of Cortés' assault on the mainland (1519), the Spaniards had created in the Caribbean a perfect base camp for that assault. When the conquistadors moved into Mexico, Honduras, Florida, and elsewhere, they carried smallpox and many other maladies, freshened by recent passage through the bodies of the Arawaks. The Spaniards rode on horses bred in the Antilles, and wardogs from the same islands trotted beside them. Their saddlebags were packed with cakes of Caribbean cassava. Behind the conquistadors, herded along by Indian servants, came herds of swine, cattle and goats all of which had been born in the islands. In the span of the first post-Columbian generation, the Spanish had created in the Caribbean the wherewithal to conquer half a world. (p. 77 Crosby, The Columbian Exchange Chapter 3)

Figure 1. Worksheet for Launching the Columbian Exchange into Mexico.

What leads you to believe that the Spanish are poised to invade and conquer the New World?

It (the text) says:

I say

And so...

What evidence shows that native culture was being adapted by the Spanish?

It (the text) says

I say…

And so….

Lesson Three: Investigating Multiple Texts for insight into Aztec and Spanish Culture

Content Objective: Students will be able to describe and explain 3-5 aspects of Aztec culture and Spanish culture through examining multiple texts.

Performance Objective:

Students will apply reading strategy: Interpreting laws/rules, common practices, and dominant assumptions to excerpts from Multiple Texts:

Florentine Codex, Broken Spears, Mirrors of Disaster, Cortés, Díaz, Thomas, Todorov

Students will read texts, record observations in journal, share responses, and discuss.

Activities: Students will read and apply reading strategy about laws/rule, common practices, and dominant assumptions to assigned readings.

Students will record observations in their journals in light of the following questions:

What rules/laws are evident in the reading regarding the Spanish? What rules/laws are evident in the reading regarding the Aztec?

What common practices are evident in the reading for the Spanish and for the Aztec?

What assumptions about the Aztecs and the Spanish can one make as one reads each text?

Students share the content of their journal entries orally and perhaps through some presentation. Pairing and sharing might be used to narrow responses.

Again, the guide questions are as follows:

What are the laws/rules/policies (both written and unwritten) which have been designed to govern the behavior of the individuals in that particular society?

What are the common practices which are considered to be "normal " or "natural"?

What are the dominant assumptions which seem to underlie the belief system of most of the individuals in that society?

Lesson Three: Reading Multiple Texts

For each text read, students list and describe rules/laws, common practices, and assumptions: Student responses will be assessed a letter A, B C, D, or E based upon the accuracy and thoroughness of the work.

1. Student lists, describes, and comments on examples that are evident in the reading.
2. Student lists and describes examples but offers little comment.
3. Student lists some examples but offers little to no description.
4. Student lists responses that are primarily inaccurate
5. Student writes no response

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Lesson Four: A Look at the Spanish Invasion

Objective: Students will summarize the major characteristics of the Columbian Exchange in a RAFT Letter

Steps:

• Read a selection from We People Here
• Read a selection from Díaz
• Read a selection from Cortés

RAFT Activity: Imagine you are one of the items in the picture (figure 1 from lesson 1.) Write a letter to a friend describing the ordeal of the Spanish Invasion of the New World.

You may be a horse, Montezuma, a Spanish ship, a soldier, a pig, a sheep, a goat, the seashore, an Aztec woman, a feather in Montezuma's headdress, a smallpox germ etc. You may be as creative as you like but you must get the facts straight.

Your letter should indicate at least 3 of the following:

Change in animal life in the New World

Change in plant life in the New World

Change in human population as a result of the Spanish Invasion

A description of an account between Cortés and Montezuma

A description of an Aztec reaction to the Spanish

Assessment: Student's Assessment for the letter will be based on a rubric that accounts for the student's demonstration of adopting a role, addressing an audience, keeping a format, and staying on topic (accurately describing three of the five criteria).

Appendix 1: Performance Standards / Objectives

The following standards are from the New Haven Social Studies Curriculum. Those

included here are addressed directly or indirectly in this curriculum unit.

Students will be able to:

• demonstrate an understanding of the ways that cultural encounters and the interaction of people of different cultures in pre-modern as well as modern times have shaped new identities and ways of life. [SS12:3c]
• explain relationships among the events and trends studied in national and world history. [SS12:2c]
• gather, analyze, and reconcile historical information, including contradictory data, from primary and secondary sources to support or reject hypotheses. [SS12:1b]
• describe, explain and analyze political, economic and social consequences that came about as the resolution of a conflict. [SS12:3e]
• evaluate data within the historical, social, political and economic context in which it was created testing its credibility and evaluating its bias. [SS12:1d]
• describe and analyze, using historical data and understandings, the options which are available to parties involved in contemporary conflicts or decision making. [SS12:4b]
• demonstrate an understanding of the ways race, gender, ethnicity, and class issues have affected individuals and societies in the past. [SS12:3f]
• describe relationships between historical subject matter and other subjects they study, current issues, and personal concerns. [SS12:4e]

Appendix 2: Reading Strategies to choose from in examining excerpts from primary and secondary sources about the Spanish Invasion

Activities that prepare students to read include:

Brainstorming

Clustering

KWL

Anticipation guide

Reading aloud.

Activities that help students construct, process, and question ideas as they read include:

Using Post-It Response Notes

Coding Text

Double Entry Journals

Sketching information in the Text

It says/I say

Activities that help students process after reading to reflect on, integrate and share ideas include:

Exit Slips and Admit Slips

Mapping

Written Conversation

Save the Last Word for Me

RAFT

From: Daniels and Zemelman, Subjects Matter

Resources:

The following resource list contains three annotated lists: a resource list for teachers, a reading list for students, and a list of materials needed to teach the unit.

Resources for Teachers

This annotated teacher's reading list contains primary and secondary material about the Spanish invasion and Columbian Exchange. In addition texts for reading strategies cited in the unit are included. Internet resources and film sources are also cited.

The Broken Spears The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico Miguel Leon-Portilla Beacon Press Boston 1990.

This is a collection of Native American accounts about the Spanish invasion of Mexico. It includes accounts of omens foretelling the arrival of the Spanish, the first reports of the Spaniard's arrival, Montezuma's reaction, the Spaniard's march to Tenochtitlan and subsequent arrival, the massacre at the main temple, the night of sorrows, the siege and surrender of Tenochtitlan. There is also a story of the conquest told by anonymous authors of Tlatelolco. A number of black and white illustrations accompany the text.

The Columbian Exchange Chapter 3 Alfred Crosby

Included as seminar reading, Crosby's work gives detailed information on the adaptation of plants and animals in the New World.

Conquest: Montezuma, Cortes, and the Fall of Old Mexico. Hugh Thomas Simon and Schuster New York 1995

Thomas' secondary account of the encounter between Montezuma and Cortés seems to be portrayed as more of a classic battle of two great empires rather than a mismatch of a select superior group over a static and backward civilization. From my preliminary skimming, the Aztecs, or Mexica as he refers to the Aztec, are described as being as driven to dominate surrounding peoples as the Spanish are conventionally described.

The Conquest of America The Question of the Other Tzevetan Todorov Translated from the French by Richard Howard. University of Oklahoma Press HarperCollins Publishers New York 1999

Todorov's work is a record of the encounters between Spaniards and native —Americans. While the information in Chapter 1: Discovery explores the relationship of Columbus with the Native Americans and Spanish, the material in Chapter 2: Conquest and Chapter 4 Knowledge appears to offer the most applicable material to my study. Reasons for Spanish victory over the Aztecs are reviewed in Chapter 2: Montezuma's passive behavior, Cortés' exploitation of internal tensions among various peoples in the area which is now Mexico, Spanish superiority of weaponry (p.61), and Aztec loss of communication. It is to this last reason which he devotes the body of his work. To Todorov, the Aztec's reliance on signs associated with the physical earth broke down in the face of the more adaptable system of language and communication inherent to the Spanish. The Spanish, able to understand the fundamental nature of the Aztec system were able to exploit the Aztec for their benefit. Without equal understanding of the Spanish outlook, and in the face of the previous mentioned reasons, the Aztec society fell. The foreword, written by Anthony Pagden describes Todorov's background, his work as a literary theorist, and the uniqueness of this account as more of a "moral treatise" than a "conventional historical account". The section, Sahagún and His Work in Chapter 4 offers in depth background material on Sahagún, the author of the Florentine Codex.

The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico 1517-1521. Bernal Díaz Del Castillo, Conquistador. Translated by A.P. Maudslay, Introduction by Hugh Thomas

Da Capo Press 2003 Introduction copyright 1996. Illustration copyright 1956.

This promises to be an excellent primary source account of events regarding encounters between the Spanish and Aztecs between 1517 and 1521. Díaz describes the encounters as discovery and conquest. Specific events described include the expedition under Cortés, the March inland, the war in Tlaxcala, the March to Mexico, the stay in Mexico, the expedition under Narvarez, the Flight from Mexico, the Halt at Tepeca, The return to the Valley, preliminary expeditions against Mexico and the Siege and Fall of Mexico.

The Florentine Codex Father Bernardino Sahagún

Written in Nahuatl and Spanish, Sahagún's account offers a rare parallel account of historical events in ancient Mexico between the arrival of Cortés and his men in 1519 and 1527. The portion reviewed in seminar from Lockhart's We People Here translates both Nahuatl and Spanish into English. Differing perspectives on the same events such as the March to Mexico, the Flight from Mexico, and the Siege and Fall of Mexico are revealed through the translations. As Todorov points out in his book The Conquest of America, Sahagún's work is unique because it is a rare example of a victor adopting and reporting in the language of the conquered. This work will provide the primary material by which students can directly interpret two sides to a historical account.

Mirrors of a Disaster. The Spanish Military Conquest of America. Gérard Chaliand. Transaction Publishers. New Brunswick, New Jersey. 2005

Chaliand tackles the Conquest of Mexico, Guatemala, Yucatan, and Peru. Part I. The Conquest of Mexico will be the focus of my inquiry. Upon first review, the work appears to be a concise and factually oriented secondary account of the Spanish military campaign in Mexico. The work has plain and informative maps of Spanish conquests (1520-1540) and the Aztec empire in 1500.

Victors and Vanquished Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico

Stuart Schwartz (editor) Bedford/St Martin's New York 2000 This is the best resource for showing the Spanish side and the Native American side of the Spanish invasion of Mexico. Schwartz organizes primary source documents primarily from Díaz and Sahagún with additional material from Cortés and Diego Durán into eight thematic chapters: Forebodings and Omens, Preparations, Encounters, the March Inland: Tlaxcala and Cholula, Tenochtitlan, Things Fall Apart: Toxcatl and the Noche Triste, the Siege and Fall of Tenochtitlan, and Aftermath: Tradition and Transformation.

We People Here Nahuatl Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico James Lockhart. Wipf and Stock. Eugene, Oregon 1993

This work contains the English translation of Sahagún's Book Twelve of the Florentine Codex and extracts from the Annals of Tlatelolco, the Codex Aubin, Annals Quauhtitlan, Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca, and the Letter from Huejotzingo (1560). The work includes separate translations of the Nahua account into English and the Spanish translation of Nahua into English.

High School Text Resources

The Americans. Gerald A. Danzer, J.Jorge Klor de Alva, Larry Krieger, Louis Wilson, Nancy Woloch. McDougal Littell. Boston, Massachusetts 1998

American History textbook gives a brief and general overview of the Spanish colonial effort in the Americas

World History. Patterns of Interaction. Roger B. Beck, Linda Black, Phillip C. Naylor, Dahia Ibo Shabaka. McDougal Littell. Boston, Massachusetts 1998.

World History text gives a brief and general overview of the Spanish colonial effort in the Americas.

Online resources

The Fall of the Aztecs

http://www.pbs.org/conquistadors/cortes/cortes_flat.html

PBS Website has interactive links titled: The Aztec Empire, Cortés' Expedition, Montezuma's Messengers, From Explorer to Conqueror, Spaniards in Tenochtitlan, Cortés Seizes Power, War Breaks Out, Siege of Technochtitlan, and The Fall of the Aztecs

Preliminary review of this source shows it should be a reliable online source for students and teachers to reference. Further investigation will be conducted to see if there is an accompanying audio visual resource.

Reading list for students

The Broken Spears The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico Miguel Leon-Portilla Beacon Press Boston 1990.

While a primary source document, it is very simply translated and therefore easily read by basic to advanced high school students. One dimensional illustrations depict graphic events such as the Massacre in the Main Temple (p. 75). These illustrations communicate an unpleasant reality of the Spanish invasion but therefore can be used as anticipatory guides to the text or as guides to discussion.

The Columbian Exchange Chapter 3 Alfred Crosby

Included as seminar reading, Crosby's work gives detailed information on the adaptation of plants and animals in the New World.

Conquest: Montezuma, Cortes, and the Fall of Old Mexico. Hugh Thomas

Simon and Schuster New York 1995

Selections from this scholarly secondary work can be used to model an author's interpretation of an historical event. The interpretation of the Spanish Aztec encounter is framed as a battle of empires.

The Conquest of America The Question of the Other Tzeutan Todorov

Translated from the French by Richard Howard. University of Oklahoma Press HarperCollins Publishers New York 1999

Todorov offers a sophisticated interpretation of the Spanish invasion which elaborates on and measures itself against the conventional historical interpretations. Chapter 2: Conquest will provide students with the reasons for Spanish victory. Chapter 4 Knowledge will give students the necessary background on Sahagun, the Spanish priest who is responsible for compiling the Florentine Codex.

The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico 1517-1521. Bernal Díaz Del Castillo, Conquistador. Translated by A.P. Maudslay, Introduction by Hugh Thomas

Da Capo Press 2003 Introduction copyright 1996. Illustration copyright 1956.

Students can discover the perspective of the Spaniard Bernal Díaz in regard to a number of significant events of the Spanish invasion. It is a primary source account of events between 1517 and 1521. Specific events described include the expedition under Cortés, the March inland, the war in Tlaxcala, the March to Mexico, the stay in Mexico, the expedition under Narvarez, the Flight from Mexico, the Halt at Tepeca, The return to the Valley, preliminary expeditions against Mexico and the Siege and Fall of Mexico.

Mirrors of a Disaster. The Spanish Military Conquest of America. Gérard Chaliand. Transaction Publishers. New Brunswick, New Jersey. 2005

Chaliand tackles the Conquest of Mexico,. Students will selections of Part I. The Conquest of Mexico from this secondary source. However, the remaining portions of the text would be useful for exploring the Spanish invasions of Guatemala, Yucatan, and Peru. The work has plain and informative maps of Spanish conquests (1520-1540) and the Aztec empire in 1500.

Victors and Vanquished Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico

Stuart Schwartz (editor) Bedford/St Martin's New York 2000 This is the best resource for showing the Spanish side and the Native American side of the Spanish invasion of Mexico. Schwartz organizes primary source documents primarily from Díaz and Sahagún with additional material from Cortés and Diego Durán into eight thematic chapters: Forebodings and Omens, Preparations, Encounters, The March Inland: Tlaxcala and Cholula, Tenochtitlan, Things Fall Apart: Toxcatl and the Noche Triste, The Siege and Fall of Tenochtitlan, and Aftermath: Tradition and Transformation.

We People Here Nahuatl Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico James Lockhart. Wipf and Stock. Eugene, Oregon 1993

This work contains the English translation of Sahagún's Book Twelve of the Florentine Codex and extracts from the Annals of Tlatelolco, the Codex Aubin, Annals Quauhtitlan, Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca, and the Letter from Huejotzingo (1560). The work includes separate translations of the Nahua account into English and the Spanish translation of Nahua into English.

High School Text Resources

The Americans. Gerald A. Danzer, J.Jorge Klor de Alva, Larry Krieger, Louis Wilson, Nancy Woloch. McDougal Littell. Boston, Massachusetts 1998

American History textbook gives a brief and general overview of the Spanish colonial effort in the Americas

World History. Patterns of Interaction. Roger B. Beck, Linda Black, Phillip C. Naylor, Dahia Ibo Shabaka. McDougal Littell. Boston, Massachusetts 1998

World History text gives a brief and general overview of the Spanish colonial effort in the Americas.

Online resources:

The Fall of the Aztecs

http://www.pbs.org/conquistadors/cortes/cortes_flat.html

PBS Website has interactive links titled: The Aztec Empire, Cortés' Expedition, Montezuma's Messengers, From Explorer to Conqueror, Spaniards in Tenochtitlan, Cortés Seizes Power, War Breaks Out, Siege of Technotitlan, and The Fall of the Aztecs

Preliminary review of this source shows it should be a reliable online source for students and teachers to reference. Further investigation will be conducted to see if there is an accompanying audio visual resource.

Materials List

The following is a list of materials needed to teach the unit.

Readings (from the list above): Excerpts are suggested from various texts from the lesson. Teachers will have to prepare these excerpts and/or select others before teaching

Journal books: Students will complete reflective writing exercises in these journals. The exercises are explained in the lessons.

Notebooks: Students can record notes or complete other assignments

Pens and pencils: for writing

Lined paper: for writing

Endnotes

1. p. 77 Alfred Crosby, Chapter 3 Old World Plants and Animals in the New World. The Columbian Exchange
2. p. 78 Crosby
3. p. 86 Crosby
4. p. 112 Crosby
5. p. 26 Anthony Pagden Hernán Cortés Letters From Mexico Yale University Press New Haven 1986
6. p. 219-224 Tzvetan Todorov The Conquest of America: The Question of the Other. University of Oklahoma Press 1999
7. p.xvi Bernal Díaz del Castillo, translated by A.P. Maudslay The Discovery and Conquest of Mexico Da Capo Press Perseus Books Group Cambridge Massachusetts 2003
8. p. 135 Díaz
9. p.124 James Lockhart We People Here Nahuatl Accounts of the Conquest of Mexico Wipf and Stock Eugene Oregon 1993
10. p. 36 Diego Durán from the History of the Indies of New Spain from Stuart Schwartz (editor) Victors and Vanquished Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico Bedford/St Martin's New York 2000
11. p. 8 Gérard Chaliand Mirrors of Disaster The Spanish Military Conquest of America Transaction Publishers New Brunswick USA 2005
12. p. 5-6 Hugh Thomas Conquest Montezuma, Cortés, and the Fall of Old Mexico Touchstone of Simon and Schuster New York 1995
13. p.30 Pagden.
14. p.120 Miguel Leon-Portilla (editor) The Broken Spears The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico Beacon Press Boston 1992
15. p. xviii Diaz
16. from an official government facsimile of the Codice Florentino by Bernardino De Sahagun - Volume 3 1979 Mexico Secretaria Gobernación Frontice Piece-Book 12